In A Rush
by Arvendell
Summary: How do you rush things that's always been there but was too stubborn to admit it? This is a side story to the Little by Little.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: This is a side story to the _Little by Little_. You could also consider this as a prequel to the _Pair of Stars_ although you don't need to read both stories to understand this one.

This is my promised story to _Blue Lone Wolf_. Even if this one is not like _Little by Little_ and _Pair of Stars_, I still hope you and the others will enjoy it ;)

As usual, I don't own Sei and Youko and the others.

**Read at your own risk!**

My 16th story!

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"**In A Rush"**

_---Arvendell---_

**Chapter 1**

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For how long she loved her friend and former fellow Rose, Mizuno Youko didn't know. Just that she did. She wasn't even aware when did it happen. It just happened. She didn't expect it, didn't plan it, but it did. She just woke up one day to realize that she was deeply in love with the mischievous, playful, and beautiful Satou Sei.

Youko used to dislike the feeling. She didn't want to accept it at first.

Why?

Because Sei would never love her.

Because Sei was in love with someone else.

However, she couldn't just throw her feelings away. Because accompanying the realization of being in loved to a person in loved to another was also the realization that she had always been in loved with that person, that she had been in loved for her for a long time, that the love she felt for her didn't happen overnight but rather slowly yet surely grew within her. Even if she wanted to, she couldn't stop herself from loving Sei. And so she had to endure the heartache of her unrequited love. She had to endure watching Sei grew farther and farther from her. All she could do was to wish for her happiness.

But fate must have other plans, because the person Sei loved left her.

And yet Youko didn't feel relief or happiness from that event because of what it did to Sei. She saw how broken Sei was when it happened. And she was there, picking the pieces of Sei's broken self, trying to fix her broken love, though she did it as subtle as she could so as not to shoo Sei away and to not reveal her real feelings. However, it was all for naught. Because Sei was never the same again.

Youko spent nights agonizing then, trying to think of ways to help Sei, and yet she couldn't find any solution. It took some months before a solution to slowly heal Sei came in the person of Toudou Shimako. Realizing that, she did everything that she could do, manipulating Sei, Shimako, and to her regret, Ogasawara Sachiko, her beloved little sister. Nevertheless, results were the most important at that time. And she did what she could for the one she loved. Thankfully, she was successful in her plans, yet she let her love stray away from her again.

It wasn't important.

As long as Sei was alright and healing, she was fine with it. She had been living with heartache for so long, what did it matter? She could deal with it for as long as she had feelings for Sei. She could face Sei, interact with her normally as she had in the past. A few months of not seeing her since the last time she visited Lillian Academy after they graduated didn't matter. She had always been a strong one. She was a strong woman. She believed so.

Until that yearly New Year gathering at Sachiko's house. She could hardly believe that Sei could still rattle her perfectly built wall, her well-established defense.

Would she blame her little sister's little sister for being the cause of it? After all, if she, Fukuzawa Yumi, didn't suggest it, then it wouldn't have happened.

But she couldn't do that to Yumi, because she, too, was grilled that day. So innocent she was. Her idea of fun was turned into a nightmare by Sei. Maybe it had been a relief for Yumi that she wasn't the only one embarrassed that day. The cousins Hasekura Rei and Shimazu Yoshino were grilled too, by their own eldest sister, Torii Eriko. Besides, it also had a good karma to Yumi, because right there and then, Sachiko admitted that she was the most important person in her life. She was really happy for them. Both Sachiko and Yumi were dear to her. They were her beloved little sisters.

However, unknown to others, she too, was grilled in the spot that day. What was that woman thinking?

Youko could still remember it like it was only yesterday.

_Sei stopped laughing when she saw the bottle Rei spun stopped while pointing at her. _

"_Wow, quick chance for revenge, Rei," Sei said before laughing again. "I'll go for consequence Rei. I'd prefer Shimako's and Eriko's situation than yours and Yumi-chan."_

"_Go ahead and strip dance," Rei said without thinking._

_The room was silent for a moment._

"_No. I mean to say…" Rei started but Eriko stopped her._

"_You can't change it now," Eriko said, smiling. There was no doubt in her mind, Sei would definitely…_

"_I like that," Sei laughingly said while the others groaned. "Hold this." _

_Sei picked the bottle at the table and gave it to Yumi and then she stepped on the table._

"_Wait," Eriko said as she headed for the component, selected a song, and then played it._

"_Nice choice, Eriko," Sei said as she started to dance at the seductive tune._

_Everyone was so focused, the others with shocked, to Sei that they didn't notice Youko's face gone pale as she stared unblinkingly to Sei who at the moment had unbuttoned her shirt, thus, showing white skin._

'_Sei, what are you doing?!' Youko screamed in her mind. She had never, ever, imagined that something like this would happen. She wasn't prepared for this, of seeing parts of the flesh of the person that had been hunting her dreams for so long until she learned to push them at the deepest corner of her mind as she kept herself busy with studies. _

_Her eyes gone wide when Sei's hand reached for the button of her jeans. She thought she couldn't breathe anymore. She could feel cold sweat trickle in her spine. Why was it that she had been trying so hard not to be tempted anymore and yet here it was, seducing her to madness?_

_Even when Sei had stopped her strip dance, it took a lot of force within her to act as usual, as calm and collected as she used to._

Sei's white, soft-looking skin had been hunting Youko for days and nights. She couldn't stop thinking about it. And to her consternation, she kept on dreaming about it, dreaming of her touching that skin, of her …no! Stop it anymore!

Youko closed her eyes tightly. What was she going to do? She had always been able to control her feelings. But now, she was slowly losing grip because of that stupid strip dance!

And that was not the end of it. The next time she was in Sachiko's house, she did the stupidest thing that she had ever done in her life.

_Youko filled her glass with wine for the nth time, not paying attention with the others at the room. She could hear Yoshino arguing with Sei. What was new, she thought as she slowly emptied her wine glass. Her thoughts once again wandered at the event earlier, when Sei greeted her with a huge smile and a bear hug. It made her really happy, and at the same time sad, and mad. What did this person feed into her that she couldn't get her out of her mind? Especially after the New Year incident, when she realized that no matter how much she tried to bury her feelings for Sei in the depth of her hearts, one smile, one hug, one stupid dance, could make them resurface again, threatening to burst out. And at the moment, being so near her and yet so far, she didn't know how long she was going to hold her feelings anymore. It was at the tip of her tongue, wanting to be spilled out. _

_But she couldn't. _

_What would she accomplish if she did? Probably scare Sei. Or probably make her laugh. She would kill Sei if she did the latter. Though she couldn't really do that to the person she loved. _

_She reached for the bottle of wine and poured on her glass. She could hear Yoshino's voice raised in a notch, making it feel like hammer in her currently throbbing head. Sei's loud laughter wasn't helping either._

"_Stop making fun of me!" Yoshino practically screamed to the hilarious Sei._

"_I'm just telling the truth," Sei said, laughing all the more._

"_Liar! You're making it…"_

"_That's it!!" _

_Before Youko could hold it, she realized that she had screamed, only to scold herself immediately. Her own voice felt like drums to her head. _

_Taking a deep breath, she firmly said, __"Yoshino-chan, stop denying that you're not possessive. We quite know that you're jealous of anyone and anything when it comes to Rei. While you, Rei, stop acting like you aren't enjoying Yoshino-chan lavishing all her attention on you. You're always struggling half-heartedly it's so obvious."_

_The two persons mentioned visibly paled._

"_Onee-sama, please calm down," Sachiko said after a moment, then caught her breath when Youko turned to her._

_Part of Youko wanted to stop, but the other part of her wanted to continue, too. She gave in to the latter and addressed Sachiko. _

"_And you, my dear petite soeur, what are you doing playing around? If you're in love with Yumi-chan then go for it. Stop acting like the world would come to an end if you would be with her. Stop acting like you could live without her when we know that you couldn't."_

_Then Youko turned her attention to the shocked Yumi. _

"_What, Yumi-chan? You want to say something? What are you afraid of? You aren't a child anymore so for once, please act like a grown one and put some sense in the head of that Onee-sama of yours."_

_After that, no one dared to talk. __If someone dropped a needle at the floor, it would surely be heard at the silence that enveloped the room._

_Youko could see the stunned faces of the people around her. That was better, she thought as she reached for her glass, only to stop when she heard the familiar laughter. She turned to see Sei snickering. Her eyes twitched. She couldn't hold it anymore. How dare Sei laughed like that? _

"_You dare to laugh, Sei. Stop acting like you know everything when in fact you don't, you don't know anything at all!" _

_And then she broke down._

_Everyone was again surprised at the sudden change of mood but Sei was quick to react and was instantly on her side and held her. _

"_There, there, I think you've had enough alcohol, Youko. Sachiko, where will Youko stay to…"_

"_I hate you, Sei! I hate you!"_

_Sei abruptly stopped talking and looked at the sobbing Youko with surprise. _

"_Youko?"_

"_I hate you, I hate you for making me feel like this, and yet, and yet, I can't help but love you, too."_

_Sei paled and froze. _

_And so did everyone. _

_However, Youko was unstoppable. _

"_What did you do to me to feel like this? Oh, I hate you so."_

Youko heaved a sigh at the memory. She didn't want to think about it anymore. She had to stop thinking about it anymore. She didn't want to remember her foolishness anymore.

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A/N: I wanted to make this one the same type as _Little by Little_, a lighthearted story, but as I was writing it, I realized I couldn't anymore. After abandoning two chapters for almost four months, I forgot how I originally planned the whole story so I just wrote what came into my mind for Chapter 3 and the succeeding chapters. So yeah, basically, I'm informing you that this story is a bit serious. I did try to lighten it up a bit on the last few chapters, as you will soon find out.

_29 July 2008_


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Nothing much happened in this chapter. This is mostly just showing Sei's point of view about the events that happened at the parties held in Sachiko's house. Chapter 1, obviously, is from Youko's point of view.

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Chapter 2

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Sei turned over her bed for the nth time. She couldn't sleep.

Again.

It had been like this since that graduation party at Sachiko's house. She blinked her eyes, trying to recall what exactly happened that time.

'_Don't think you've escape already', Sei thought concerning Yumi and Yoshino after the two and Shimako immediately and strongly opposed to play truth or consequence at the gathering at Sachiko's house for the latter and Rei's graduation party. _

'_If you think that you're safe, then think again', she continued to her mind and chuckled to herself. _

_For the mean time, Sei enjoyed herself from winning in playing cards. However, after the dinner, she decided that it was time to have some real fun. _

"_Is that what I think it is?" Yoshino asked, eyeing the bottle in Sei's hand._

"_Yep! Want some?" Sei asked, looking at Yoshino, then to Yumi who fidgeted nervously. 'Can you feel trouble coming, Yumi-chan,' she thought cheerfully. _

_Everyone agreed to drink. _

_Sei handed the first glass to Yumi and winked at Sachiko who frowned at her. _

"_You can frown now, Sachiko, but later on, you'll thank me," she said, grinning from ear to ear._

"_And why would I?" Sachiko asked, her frown growing._

_Sei flashed another smile, before handing the next glass to Youko who was being unusually quiet. _

"_Hey, what's up with you? Stop thinking about school already and enjoy the night."_

_Youko merely raised her eyebrows and reached for the glass._

_Sei shrugged her shoulders at the response. She would ask Youko later. For now, she would make sure to have fun with the rest of the Yamayurikai. Her smile grew at the thought._

_Soon, the one bottle of wine was followed by another, and another. As the time dragged on and as more wines were consumed, the more Sei was enjoying herself. _

_Yumi was so red she would probably burst into flames. Sachiko had a permanent scowl on her face, though she could see a slight blush adorning her cheeks. Good. Sei was sure that the color wasn't from drinking alone. _

"_So, what are you planning to do once you're alone in Sachiko's bedroom, Yumi-chan?"_

"_What do you mean? Of course I'm going to sleep," Yumi answered defensively._

"_Why are you so defensive? I was merely asking if you have other plans tonight aside from sleeping." _

"_Because you sounded like I'm going to rape Onee-sama or what," Yumi retorted, then blushed all the more when the words sunk in her currently hazy brain. On the other hand, Sachiko really blushed this time._

_Sei laughed, joined by Yoshino. _

"_I didn't say that, Yumi-chan. Why? Did it cross your mind to do that? Naughty, naughty Yumi-chan, want to make a…"_

"_That's enough, Sei-sama," Sachiko cut her off. _

_Sei grinned at Sachiko in response, before glancing at the laughing Yoshino and said, "You're right. That's more like Yoshino-chan."_

_Yoshino's laughter abruptly stopped as her lips thinned as she said, "Are you saying that I'm going to rape Rei-chan?"_

_Sei shrugged her shoulders in response, which infuriated the younger one more, but before Yoshino could say anything, she beat her into it. _

"_And I heard you tied Rei in bed, too."_

"_What?! You're just making that up! Why would I tie Rei-chan in bed?!" Yoshino said in a high pitched voice, not liking the topic and being the center of attention._

"_Not only that, I also heard that you slap a person because she looked and smiled at Rei. Poor girl," Sei continued as if Yoshino didn't speak. She could see the latter's eyes turned into slits while half of the people at the room looked worried and the other half amused._

"_I did not slap someone!" Yoshino practically screamed in anger. "Stop making fun of me!"_

"_I'm just telling the truth," Sei said, laughing all the more._

"_Liar! You're making it…"_

_Yoshino's words were cut by another scream. Everyone turned to the source in shock, gaping at Youko who looked red in anger and from the drinks. If someone dropped a needle at the floor, it would surely be heard at the silence that enveloped the room. They had never seen Youko like this before._

"_Yoshino-chan, stop denying that you're not possessive. We quite know that you're jealous of anyone and anything when it comes to Rei. While you, Rei, stop acting like you're not enjoying Yoshino-chan lavishing all her attention on you. You're always struggling half-heartedly it's so obvious," Youko said to Yoshino and Rei. _

_The two persons mentioned visibly paled._

"_Onee-sama, please calm down," Sachiko said after a moment, then caught her breath when Youko turned to her._

"_And you, my dear petite soeur, what are you doing playing around? If you're in love with Yumi-chan then go for it. Stop acting like the world would come to an end if you'll be with her. Stop acting like you can live without her when we know that you can't."_

_Then Youko turned her attention to the shocked Yumi. _

"_What, Yumi-chan? You want to say something? What are you afraid of? You aren't a child anymore so for once, please act like a grown one and put some sense in the head of that Onee-sama of yours."_

_No one dared to talk after that. _

_Sei looked around at the stunned faces of the rest of the people at the room. They were all holding their breath in shock. Yoshino, Rei and Yumi looked pale, while Sachiko's face was that of embarrassment and indignation. This was rich, she thought, snickering at their reactions, and then laughed openly when Youko turned and glared at her._

"_You dare to laugh, Sei. Stop acting like you know everything when in fact you don't, you don't know anything at all."_

_And then Youko broke down. _

_Everyone was again surprised at the sudden changed of mood but Sei was quick to react and was instantly on Youko's side and held her. _

"_There, there, I think you've had enough alcohol, Youko. Sachiko, where will Youko stay to…"_

"_I hate you, Sei! I hate you!"_

_Sei abruptly stopped talking and looked at the sobbing Youko with surprise. _

"_Youko?"_

"_I hate you, I hate you for making me feel like this, and yet, and yet, I can't help but love you, too."_

_Sei paled and froze. _

_And so did everyone. Well, maybe only half of them because Sachiko, Shimako and Eriko didn't look surprised at all. If anything, they were looking at Sei and Youko worriedly._

"_What did you do to me to feel like this? Oh, I hate you so."_

"_Onee-sama…" Sachiko reached for the sobbing Youko and took her from the frozen Sei. "Yumi, could you help me please? Let's take Onee-sama to the guest room."_

"_I'll do it," Sei finally managed to say. "Please let me, Sachiko."_

_The serious look on Sei's face left no doubt that she wouldn't back out even if everyone opposed her. So together with Sachiko, they led Youko to the guest room._

"_Let me take care of her, if it's alright with you, Sachiko."_

"_Of course. If you need anything, just ask the maids or you can come to me."_

_Sachiko then left the two of them alone._

Sighing after recollecting the bits and pieces that occurred at that party, Sei threw her blanket and stood up. She wouldn't be getting any sleep anymore.

"And I thought it would be alright after that night, Youko," she muttered to herself.

That night, once Youko was sober enough to think and act rationally, the first thing that she said was to forget everything.

"_Forget that it happened, Sei," Youko said, avoiding Sei's eyes._

"_Youko…"_

"_Don't worry about me, Sei. I know my place," Youko said with a forced smile, trying to lighten the gloomy mood at the room. "And I'm a strong woman, am I not?"_

_Sei nodded slowly. Her mind was still in turmoil. How would you react if suddenly you found out that your best friend was in love with you? _

"_Besides, both of us wouldn't want complication. Being with you requires too much energy," Youko teased._

"_Youko…" _

_She couldn't seem to find the right words to say. She, Satou Sei? Now, that was what people didn't see everyday._

"_Forget it, Sei. I'd prefer to be your friend than nothing. You don't have to force yourself to love me just because I love you. I don't deserve that. You don't deserve that."_

_Sei intently stared at her friend for many years. The Youko she knew was back. The calm, collected and confident Youko._

"_Friends?" Sei asked softly._

_Youko nodded. _

"_Yes. Friends."_

"_Hmp, you can't live without me, Mizuno Youko," Sei said, sporting a grin. She would sort her feelings later. For the moment, it was better to keep her relationship with Youko somewhat intact. She wouldn't want Youko to hurt more. Besides, she didn't think she could go on without Youko's friendship. It didn't matter that they didn't see each other often. In fact, she thought that that fact was to their advantage after what happened. They wouldn't have to be awkward with each other._

"_And you can't live without me, Satou Sei," Youko said with raised eyebrows._

"_That's what you think. Who wouldn't be glad to escape from a meddler?" Sei said with wide eyes._

"_And who wouldn't want to be free from a high-maintenance child in a grown-up person's body?" Youko countered._

"_Hey! I'm not a child!"_

_The two shared a laughter, though somewhat strained. Probably, this way was the best for them. Forget everything. Act like nothing happened and moved on with their lives._

The sound of alarm clock broke Sei's train of thoughts. After turning it off, she proceeded to the bathroom, still thinking.

"Not a child, huh?"

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A/N: The next chapter would be mostly on Sei's POV, too ;)

Have a nice day!

_---Arvendell---_

_01 August 2008_


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Hi there. Thanks for you who reviewed Chapters 1 and 2. Here's another one :)

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Chapter 3

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Sei popped another piece of popcorn in her mouth, bored eyes not leaving the TV screen even for just a few seconds. Sure, she didn't understand a thing on what was shown on the TV. Frankly, she wasn't interested. She was more like gazing intently at the screen yet not really seeing it. Her mind was somewhere else, thinking about a certain black-haired beauty.

Absent-mindedly, she grabbed a handful of popcorn and stuffed it in her mouth.

One second…two seconds…three…

A large choking sound ensued at the room, rivaling that of the loud noise coming from the TV. One hand shot to the aching throat while the other frantically grabbed for a glass of water situated somewhere at the cluttered table. After a fight with chocolate wrappers and bags of chips, pale, white hands got hold on the much needed reliever. She gulped the water with much gusto, only to cough the water all over the place. Really, what was she thinking?

After a couple of thumping at her chest, careful drinking, and several strings of curses in her mind, the blonde finally sighed with relief. For a moment, she closed her eyes and relaxed at the comfort of the soft couch.

"You're really stupid," Sei muttered to herself.

Several minutes later, she opened her eyes and stared at the mess the choking event had created. She grimaced at the sight of her popcorn littered at the floor, not to mention the sprays of water both at the table and at the floor.

Grumbling to herself, she started cleaning up the mess she had created, briefly stopping when she had to pick something under the bookshelf near the table. On her knees, she tried to reach several pieces of popcorn. However, some were out of her reach. She stood up and tried to move the shelf, but due to its heaviness, her effort was futile. She tried pushing the shelf for several times, until she got fed up and act childishly by kicking the offending shelf, only to curse with pain later as she held her right foot.

Man, couldn't she get any stupider than she already was at the moment!

Sei hopped to the couch. Once seated, she gently massaged her sore foot while glaring at the shelf as if telling it that everything was its fault. Once the pain subsided, she relaxed in the couch. The mess in her living room could wait later. She needed to think about her other mess first and solve it so that the stupidity would leave her apartment, permanently.

She closed her eyes and think again about the black-haired beauty. The days and weeks that had passed had been so crazy for her. She was restless. She couldn't seem to think of anything but Youko.

Youko here.

Youko there.

It was Youko everywhere!

Groaning, she held her forehead while thinking of ways to go back to her normal self, her normal life. This was just so unlike her! And it wasn't fun at all!

"It's your entire fault, Youko…" she grumbled, only to take it back immediately. It was not Youko's fault if she loved her more than a friend. It was not Youko's fault if she accidentally slipped and told her that she was in love with her.

However, it was also not hers, Sei's, fault if she didn't know what to do! She didn't want to lose her friendship with Youko and yet she didn't know how she would deal with the fact that Youko was in love with her. Despite what Youko said that they both should pretend that nothing happened, to pretend that Youko didn't say those words, she still couldn't forget it.

How the hell was she going to forget it! Youko telling her that she loved her, Youko telling her that she hated her for making her fall in love with her. She couldn't just forget those facts!

Was it really her fault?

Sei opened her eyes and glared at the first sight that greeted her eyes, which was the TV, before chuckling humorlessly.

"I think I've gone insane…"

Gazing around the living room, her gaze fell on the telephone. Before she could really think what she would do, she picked the telephone and dialed the first number that came into her mind. After what seemed like forever, although in reality it was only several seconds, someone picked up the other line.

A cold and collected voice answered.

Sei didn't bother to introduce herself and instead said in a husky voice, "Hey there, sexy. Will you be my date tonight?"

She almost burst out laughing when she heard a gasp of surprise.

"If you go out with me, I'll give you everything you want," she continued.

"Sei-sama! What games are you playing this time?" Came the indignant voice. "If you…"

"I'm just practicing," Sei intervened. "I'd like to try that to Yumi-chan. What do you, think? Am I good enough? Or perfect?" She asked, trying to stop from chuckling, which she was unable to hold on to when the other person at the line almost sputtered her name in anger.

"It's a joke, a joke. So, what took you long to answer. Where were you?"

Before the person at the other line could answer, she fired another question to avoid the reprimand that was surely at the tip of that person's lips.

"Are you busy seducing my cute Yumi-chan?"

Sei chuckled with merriment as she heard another gasp of indignation. She could already picture the other person's face right now. Gracefully arched eyebrows rose in a frown, eyes sharp and lips pressed together in anger.

"So how was it? Sachiko's got Yumi-chan," she said in a sing-song voice, smiling to herself as she listened to Sachiko's response.

"Sei-sama, if you have nothing important to say, please excused me. I have important things to do," Sachiko said in barely contained anger, making Sei's smile grew wide.

"Sure. I won't disturb your…important activities," Sei drawled.

"Yes, thank you," Sachiko said, ignoring the insinuation in Sei's tone of voice. "And if you may, Sei-sama, I would like to give you a piece of advice, too."

"Sure, sure. Anything from Sa-chan?" Sei teased.

"Yes. If you have time to meddle in…my affairs with Yumi, then maybe you should try to focus your time and energy in solving yours. I don't know what happened between you and Onee-sama last time at my house but I believe that if I could find a way to happiness, I'm sure you can, too. Just follow your own advice to me. Follow your heart, Sei-sama, and it will lead you to less…trouble than you can handle."

Sei's smile faltered after Sachiko's litany, but she wouldn't let her know that.

"Wow, Sa-chan all grown up now. I bet Yumi-chan loves better the grown-up Sachiko rather than the sissy Sachiko," she continued to tease, grinning at Sachiko's indignant reply.

"Please refrain from calling me names, Sei-sama!"

"Yes, yes, all mighty Sachiko. I'll see you soon. Enjoy your seduction! Have a nice day!"

Sei didn't wait for Sachiko's response. Sachiko would understand her rudeness. The later was used to her. Besides, it was fun to imagine Sachiko's reaction after those words. She felt better now.

Chuckling, she replayed in her mind the conversation she just had at Youko's stoic and yet easily angered little sister especially when it came to a certain cute brown-haired girl. She stopped chuckling when she reached the last bits of the conversation.

_Follow your heart… _

"Follow my heart, huh?...So what does my heart says?"

Sei was lost in thought for a moment, before a frown made its way to her thoughtful expression.

"Did I really tell Sachiko that? That's so unoriginal. I'm probably getting old."

Chuckling to herself humorlessly, she raised her feet at the table as she once again think of her trouble.

"What does my heart says? If I follow you, where will you lead me?"

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A/N: Probably some _action_ next chapter ;)

_---Arvendell---_

_09 August 2008_


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I have really nothing to say except, _sana masiyahan kayo! _(Hope you'll enjoy!)

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Chapter 4

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Youko rarely scowled. She almost never scowled. But recently, it adorned her face more often than she had done in her entire life before she entered college.

Sighing in defeat, she pressed the delete button of the notebook's keyboard, harder than she should, as she gazed at the letters that slowly disappeared at the screen. It only consisted of three letters. A letter _s_, letter _e_, and letter _i_.

S-e-i.

Sei.

It was sei over and over.

She didn't even know when or how she ended typing those letters.

'Of course by pressing the _s, e, _and _i_ buttons, Youko,' she told herself mockingly.

She wasn't aware that she had been typing those letters, though she knew that it was because she had been thinking about the person with that name. Again.

Sei.

She hadn't seen her in several weeks. She didsn't want to see her, and yet she did want to.

There were times that she would pick up her phone and dial Sei's number just to hear her voice, only to stop at the middle of doing so. What was she going to say? Did Sei even want to hear her voice? Did she even want her to call? Did she even miss her like she did?

What was she thinking? Surely Sei didn't miss her, didn't want to see her.

Probably Sei hated her now but was just too nice to tell her. Her absence at Eriko's _get together meeting_ was proof enough. Though Eriko didn't tell her, she was way too perceptive to not know that there was a hidden agenda in the latter's invitation to dine out. She knew that Eriko invited Sei, too. Especially when she caught Eriko sneakily glancing at her watch a couple of times, or Eriko's attempts to stall her stay.

But then, maybe Eriko just really wanted to see her and talk to her and that she didn't invite Sei at their meeting. Maybe she was the only one that was hoping that Sei was invited too, that Sei was coming, too.

Despite her efforts, a single tear escape Youko's eyes at the thought of not seeing Sei again. She brushed the lone tear almost brusquely.

'Since when did you become weak and pathetic, Mizuno Youko? Get a hold of yourself and stop whining like a child. Haven't you already told yourself to stop thinking about it anymore, to stop thinking about her anymore?' Youko chided herself.

Besides, wasn't it her who told Sei to forget everything? To pretend that it didn't happen? That they would remain friends. That she would be contented with being friends with her?

However, no matter how much she told herself to do so, she just couldn't stop thinking about her.

Well, how could they truly sort everything if both of them were avoiding seeing each other? Of them avoiding the topic?

They should have talked more about the issue rather than saying that _'let's remain friends'_ crap.

"Friends? That's…that's…" Youko struggled for a while to say the words that rarely touched her lips let alone thought about it.

Finally, frustration gave in.

"Friends? That's bullshit."

---o---

Wherein before, Youko avoided dating let alone pay attention to the male specie unless it had something to do with what she considered as relevant matters such as studying, now she made a point to herself to at least try to get herself involved in such stuff. But only if she wasn't busy. She had come to a conclusion of burying herself to studies. And when there were no books to read, no reports to write, no exams to study upon, she went out with friends, or more like acquaintances, at the Law School.

Just like what she was doing right now.

And Youko was bored to death.

It wasn't because her companion's topic of discussion was boring. In fact, it was not. He was quite knowledgeable and with a sense of humor. The problem was the person himself. It was not because of who he was but of whom she was with now. She would have enjoyed it no matter how mundane the topic was if it was with someone who was blonde, who was…

'There you go again. You didn't come here to think about her. You came here to forget about her so cut it out,' she told herself.

Only to find herself later on alone away from people and thinking again about a certain blonde-haired person.

A ring of her mobile phone cut Youko's thoughts. Staring at the gadget, she had a mental battle for some time, whether to answer the call or not. Finally dismissing the latter option, she answered, and somehow felt relief at the sound of her little sister's voice. She just realized how much she had missed Sachiko.

"New Year at your house? Alright. I'll see you and Yumi-chan."

After the brief chat with Sachiko, Youko could feel apprehension and excitement. Surely Sei would be there. She just knew she would be. And she would see her again. Maybe it was what she needed to truly moved on. The last time they were together, she didn't ask nor waited for Sei's response to her unintentional and embarrassing confession. She didn't give her the chance to do so. She didn't give Sei the chance to reject her or accept her (though in her heart of hearts, she knew that Sei would reject her). She made the decision for the both of them, and Sei just went along with it. Whether Sei truly agreed with her decision or not, she had to hear it. They had to talk about it. Again.

Somehow, the thought made her feel better, no matter the outcome would be.

---o---

Youko surreptitiously glanced on her surrounding. She couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watch since she came to the university that morning. The feeling only left her when she was at her classes. However, when those classes were over, the feeling was back.

Slowing down her steps, she tried to sense anyone that might be looking at her. Or worse, stalking her.

She made it past the gates and reached her apartment in a couple of minutes, which was just a walking distance from the university, without noticing anything unusual. Shrugging the nagging feeling at the back of her mind, she reached for her key…only to drop it when she felt someone moved behind her back. She tried to turn around quickly.

Tried was the word, because whoever behind her was faster and she suddenly felt a hand clamping her nose and mouth just as the other held her in place.

A couple of second later, Youko felt dizzy. Trying to break free from her assailant served futile with her strength giving away. She vaguely smelled a familiar scent, but unable to recognize it as darkness finally claimed her senses.

* * *

A/N: _Hanggang sa susunod! _(Until next time!)

:) :)

_---Arvendell---_

_19 August 2008_


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I just came back from a trip (work-related) attending meetings and interviews resulting to headache last night ;) But since I'm here posting Chapter 5, it means I'm feeling better and is happily browsing the internet before going back to work (the last time I had access to internet was Friday and today is Wednesday so I'm trying to update myself on stuffs that happened, checking mails etc. Thankfully our trip for today was cancelled :)

Anyway, sorry about this chapter since it was hurriedly revised. And, thanks a lot guys!

_Ishii,_ _salamat sa'yo. Heto na ang kasunod ;)_

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**

Chapter 5

* * *

"_How are you doing, my lady?"_

_Silence met the teasing. She would never give him the satisfaction of responding to any of his talks and actions. Sitting straight and face calm, she gazed at the person impassively. Irritation was clearly showing on his earlier smug face. He was getting tired of her lack of response._

"_Are you sure you don't want to ask me why I brought you here?"_

_Another silence._

"_You really wanted the hard way, aren't you, Ms Mizuno? Tell me, how hard do you want it to be?"_

_Youko refused to flinch at the malicious gaze that the man gave her. Sitting in a chair with her arms and feet bound helped her remain motionless. Whatever this man wanted, whatever the reasons she was abducted, she didn't know yet. She busied herself with collecting herself first. After all, she had just awoken in this room, a room that contains nothing but a chair and a table with little light. _

_Calculating eyes met malicious ones._

_She quietly sized up the man in front of her. She had never met him before, but she could easily tell that he was one of those who think nothing but themselves. Those who…_

_This time, she hardly managed to control herself from flinching. The man's grip on her arm made her skin crawl. _

_Her eyes widened when he inched closer. She could see the details of his face, the disgusting grin that she wanted to wipe away from his face with violence._

_A couple of inches distance left, which shortened with each millisecond that passed._

_A couple of millimeters left…_

A strangled scream tore the silence of the house.

A black-haired woman shot upwards in a rush. Gasping for breath and wide-eyed, she gazed at her surroundings. Even though the place was unfamiliar, she calmed down a bit when her eyes saw a dresser, a chair and a small table. And she wasn't sitting and bound in a chair but rather sitting in a soft and quite spacious bed.

She breathed a sigh of relief. The man and being bound and almost being assaulted were just a dream.

She tried to remember how she got in this room. Did she come here? Was she staying in an inn because she had another seminar?

Her breath hitched in her throat when she realized that she wasn't in a seminar or any class activity.

"What happened to me?"

She tried to think about what she was doing before she fell asleep.

She couldn't remember falling asleep in this room!

And then a rush of memories filled her mind.

She remembered walking to her apartment, feeling like someone was stalking her. And when she was about to open her door, someone held her and she remembered struggling from an unknown force that brought her to darkness.

Youko's heart raced as realization dawned. She was abducted.

But by whom?

And why?

Was the one who abducted her was the person in her dream?

Was it really a dream or did it really happened that she just couldn't remember at the moment?

Her eyes settled on the door. If she wanted to get answers, she needed to do something.

After collecting herself, she slowly made her way towards the door, not bothering how she really looked at the moment, merely aware that she was definitely wearing clothes and that nothing hurts in any parts of her body, except maybe a headache.

Carefully turning the knob, she felt relieved that it wasn't lock. Quietly, she opened the door.

Once outside the room, she glanced around. Finding no other person around, she tiptoed, trying to find an escape. She made it past the living room without any sign of another life inside the house, only to swear when she found her way out locked.

Minutes later, she returned in frustration to the room where she had been before. She couldn't get out. She tried the door at the kitchen, but it was blocked. The windows weren't any better. Whoever her abductor was, he or she wasn't around this house, or more like a cottage instead of a house.

As minutes passed by, unlikely thoughts came into her mind. Had she made an enemy who wanted revenge to her? Why?

She didn't think she had any enemy. True, she didn't socialize a lot, and tended to ignore things that she considered as trivial, but if a person didn't mingle a lot with people, didn't she have lesser chances of making enemies? And as just only a couple of years law student, she hadn't been involved in any cases that could be considered really dangerous.

Slowly, her puzzlement of whoever did this to her turned into worries on the possibilities that might happen to her, but dismissed it as soon as it came to her mind.

"I'm not going to make it easy for you, whoever you are," she said, a new sense of courage came into her. She hadn't talk with Sei yet. There was no way she would let anything worse to happen to her until then. And there was Sachiko and Yumi, too. And the others. She must be strong to…

"What aren't you going to make easy for me?"

Youko strangled a scream when someone spoke behind her. She didn't hear anyone coming. Grabbing the nearest thing to her, which was a pillow, she quickly spun and smacked whoever was behind her. She attacked in anger, just as the person tried to escape from her assault.

"Youko! Stop it!"

She stopped in mid-attack and gazed at the cowering person in front of her. She recognized that voice.

"Sei!"

"Hey there," Sei greeted once she was sure that Youko wouldn't attack her anymore. "How are you doing?"

"How am I doing?" Youko asked as she caught her breath. "What are you doing here? How did you find me?"

Sei grinned.

"Why, are we playing hide and seek?"

Youko's brow twitched.

"This is no time to play games, Sei."

"I'm not playing. You're the one here who's saying that we're playing hide and seek," Sei said, the grin never leaving her face, which grew wider when realization showed in Youko's face.

"You…What games are you playing, Satou Sei, bringing me here?" She asked in barely controlled anger.

"I didn't…" Sei tried to deny, but Youko's glare cut her words. Smiling sheepishly, she gestured for Youko to sit.

"I'm sorry, Youko."

Youko was quiet for a moment, staring at Sei for a long time, until the latter felt uncomfortable at her scrutiny.

"So, are you hungry? Why don't we go to the kitchen and…" Sei tried to make a conversation.

"Explain."

After a minute or two of waiting for Sei to say something, Youko stood up.

"I'm going home."

"Wait, Youko. I'll explain," Sei said in a hurry, trying to change Youko's mind.

"Unless you explain, I'm not staying."

"Please…pretty please…"

Youko's gaze returned to Sei. For a moment, a battle was fought within her. She was mad for being here without her own volition, and yet looking at Sei now, her hands clasped together as if in a prayer, her eyes making that puppy look, she couldn't just say no.

Seeing Youko's expression relaxing a bit, Sei reached for her hand.

"We'll talk later."

Those were the only words that left Sei's lips as she dragged Youko to the kitchen.

They had a quiet meal, saying words only necessary. Sei made it a point to avoid Youko's gaze and whenever their eyes met, she just smiled.

Once done at the kitchen, Sei dragged Youko back to the room she occupied before and pushed her towards the dresser.

"Change into something. We're going out. I'll wait outside."

"Wait…"

"Later, Youko, later," Sei said with a wink as she headed to the door, leaving Youko who was torn between wanting to scream and choke Sei until she acts seriously and explain everything to her.

* * *

A/N: Until next chapter! Expect that it will take longer. I have to change everything I've written in the next chapter because of some facts that I've only considered recently ;)

Have a nice day!

_---Arvendell---_

_27 August 2008_


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: This would be the longest chapter. I had to merge two chapters and change more than half of the whole chapter.

**

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**

Chapter 6

* * *

Questions were meant to be answered. Some people would spend so much their time finding the answers. Some would leave things as it was. Knowing what you needed to know would help you understand things that were bothering you. However, there were times that it was better if the questions were left unanswered.

For Youko, seeking answers to things around her, things that could affect her, things that surrounded her and those she cared about, was second to her nature. Her tendency to meddle to her friends' affairs during high school was proof enough. If it was not, then add the career path that she had chosen. Being a lawyer would mean that she would seek answer to questions to be successful. That would just be the tip of an iceberg of being a lawyer.

So then, sitting in a chair in the semi-darkened place with loud music, people dancing around and drinking around, she was nearly at the end of her patience. She had been waiting for answers since she woke up this morning! And the one who had the answers to her questions was nowhere to be found.

Wait.

There she was.

Wanting to choke the answer from Sei flew out of Youko's mind when she saw her. Her already dark eyes darkened more at the sight.

How dare she?

A pang of jealousy crept Youko's heart as she watched Sei danced with a lady she didn't know. She watched as Sei held the woman's waist and leaned over, saying something before both of them burst into laughter. They looked so sweet together.

Turning her face away, Youko blinked back the tears that threatened to spill in her eyes. She should have left already when she had the chance this morning. She shouldn't have searched for the reason why Sei 'abducted' her. She shouldn't have...

She really was such a fool.

Jealous.

Insecure.

She hadn't known those feelings until she met Sei.

"Hi there. Mind if I get you some drinks?"

Normally, Youko would just brush away anyone. However, jealousy coupled with insecurity wasn't really a good combination. She raised her face to look at the man standing in front of her.

"Suit yourself," she said carelessly. If Sei saw it fit to leave her after taking her here, then she might as well entertain herself.

Youko accepted the offered drinks and entered into a boring conversation. At least, it was better than sitting all alone in this club and seething with anger.

"Hey, how about a dance?"

The words seemed foreign to Youko. Not that she hadn't heard it before. What surprised her was the fact that she was the one who asked the man to dance.

She must have been drunk.

No, she wasn't yet. After all, she had just two glasses of mild drinks.

Probably some kind of rebellion.

Yes. That must be it.

The man grinned, before standing up and held his hands for her.

Youko reached for the offered hand and they walked towards the dance floor.

"Hey!"

Youko never made it to the dance floor when she was yanked away from the man. She collided with something soft.

"What the …"

The man didn't finish his exclamation when he met a deadly glare.

"Sei!" Youko exclaimed. When did Sei get here?

"Watch where you put that hand of yours, buddy!"

"What business of yours to just do and say that?!" The man answered.

"You're touching what is not yours!" Sei spat.

"Sei, what is going on with you?" Youko asked as she tried to break free from Sei's grip, but the latter tightened her arms around her, trapping her in a hug.

Youko would have enjoyed it. The feeling of them this close together was what she had been wanting before. However, the scene at the dance floor prevented her from enjoying the feeling. She struggled harder.

"I don't know what you're saying but it seems she doesn't want to be with you!" The man said, seeing Youko's actions.

"That does it!"

Youko froze when soft lips slammed on hers. Wide-eyed, she watched Sei kissed her hard.

The man beside them was forgotten. Even when he left, the two didn't notice.

The loud noise was met by deaf ears as Youko stood stock still while Sei kissed her. Her lack of response only emboldened Sei to force her mouth open. When she did, the kiss deepened. She grabbed onto Sei as finally she responded to the kiss. When they broke the kiss, dark eyes gazed at dark eyes.

"Youko…"

"I'm leaving."

Sei didn't object and instead followed Youko. They were quiet until they were outside. When Youko headed to the street, Sei grabbed her hand to stop her.

"Where are you going?"

"Home."

"The car is over there."

"I'm going home alone."

"No way! I promise I'll behave so come on."

"Stop playing with me. I'm tired of your games, Sei. If you hate me, just say so, just don't make a fool of me."

"When did I do that?" Sei asked in an innocent voice, ignoring the anger in Youko's voice.

Youko glared at Sei, before her expression turned into sadness. She freed herself from Sei's grip and walked towards the latter's car quietly.

"Youko, please don't get mad," Sei's soft voice came as a whisper in the night.

Youko would have ignored Sei had it not been for the serious tone she used. Stopping but without looking back, she waited if Sei was going to say anything else.

"I'm not playing with you. I just don't know how I'm going to start. When I decided to do this, I know what I wanted to say, but I haven't thought on how I'm going to say it," Sei said slowly.

"When I heard you said that you were in love with me, I didn't know how I'm going to react. I know you care for me very much, and you're one person that I don't want to be out of my life. I don't need to see you everyday just to know that you care for me…for you to know that I care for you," Sei continued.

Silence…

"You know I've loved her more than anything else, and she left me. I've been afraid, Youko."

Youko closed her eyes. She felt so numb, emotionally from the words she was hearing from the lips of the person behind her. She felt the tears that were making their way to her cheeks, and yet made no effort to wipe them away. She just stood there, rooted in her place as more words came out of Sei's lips.

"So I avoided you. I didn't show at Eriko's invitation even if I said I would. I know you'd be there. I wanted to see you only when I have the answer to myself. You don't deserve less, Youko. It would be unfair to you if I would force myself to love you just because you do… I thought what I really feel for you. I tried so hard. I'm so confused. What do I really feel for you? Is it only of a friend? Or is it more?"

Sei stopped for a moment, trying to clear her throat.

"And then I've realized, you had always been in my heart, Youko."

Youko thought she had stopped breathing. The next words that Sei would say would decide her fate in love with her. Surprisingly, cold hands made their way on her stomach, pulling her to something soft behind.

"You had always been there, and I took it for granted knowing that no matter what, you'd always care for me, would always love me. I'm sorry, Youko, please forgive me for taking you for granted, for being ignorant with my own feelings, for hurting you all these years."

Shaky pair of hands made their way to the hands resting at Youko's stomach. Squeezing it tight, Youko turned around and came face to face with a sad and beseeching Sei.

"W-well, if you would let me have my revenge, I'd probably forgive you," Youko said in a throaty voice, smiling shakily.

Sei was confused for a moment, before a big silly smile adorned her face.

"What kind of revenge?" She teased.

"For tonight, just a smack in the head and a good 10 minutes of tongue-lashing," Youko said dryly.

"Really?" Sei asked playfully, making Youko wonder what was so exciting with what she said. "Can I have an advance?"

Youko wondered for a moment, before her eyes widened when Sei brought her face closer to hers and in a blink of an eye, soft lips touched hers for the second time tonight. As briefly as it came, it was gone. Dumbfounded, she stared at Sei.

"What? You said 10 minutes tongue-clashing. That's only 1 second, 2 at best, and no tongue had been involved yet," Sei said innocently.

All Youko could do was glare at Sei. Tongue-lashing and tongue-clashing weren't the same.

Laughing, Sei pulled Youko towards the car.

"Come on then, let's hurry up so you could get on with that revenge and then I could enjoy myself later with something soft and warm."

Despite herself, Youko blushed.

"You dirty-old man."

"What? I was merely thinking about getting snugly tucked in a soft and warm bed. I don't know about you but now I'm feeling tired and sleepy," Sei said looking as innocent as she could be.

"I see. And I thought you had something better in your mind," Youko mocked.

"And then you could give me the tongue-clashing there," Sei continued, ignoring what Youko said. "And maybe after that, I could give you something, too, like…" she trailed off, making a point of looking at Youko from head to toe.

"Dirty-old man," Youko muttered, a tingling feeling traveled at her body as she watched Sei's heated gaze.

* * *

A/N: Well, it was a bit drama but hey, I couldn't help it!

And you know what, I'll be busy for the next couple of days because my boss told me to transcribe recorded meetings that I was not present so it's hard to understand it! Plus they are too noisy right now here at the office that I couldn't understand the tape I was listening to! Well, good for you because since I couldn't concentrate listening, I decided to post this chapter ;) Later though, for sure I will have 'bleeding ears' due to listening, rewinding, listening and then transcribing! Whatever! Good luck to myself hahaha! ;)

Until next time folks!

_---Arvendell---_

_04 September 2008_


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: To tell you the truth, I like the original version of Chapter 6 instead of the one that I posted. I want to blame it to the climate haha! Because I forgot that the climate in Japan is very different from ours, so the scene wouldn't be appropriate. The only parts that I retained from the original on the posted one were the last parts when Sei is joking.

Enough of that! Here's more waffy moments ;)

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**

Chapter 7

* * *

For someone who tended to flirt with beautiful girls that she encountered, Sei acted painfully reluctant on Youko. She herself couldn't understand why. Hadn't Youko been recipient to her flirty remarks and actions before, when she was ignorant to her feelings and of Youko's? She had thought that once everything was settled between her and Youko, it would be easy.

But no.

It wasn't easy at all.

Last night, after each of them took a shower, they had a nice and quiet midnight snack together. They talked about school, of friends, of the holidays, but not on their relationship. They even slept next to each other, snuggled to each other, and that was it!

Was the event at the club just a result of alcoholic drinks? Funny how they reverted back to avoidance when just a couple of hours before midnight she had admitted her feelings for Youko.

"We're in a relationship now, aren't we?" Sei asked herself, doubting what happened yesterday night as just some sort of a dream. After contemplating a moment, she dismissed the idea. Everything was real. Everything that happened yesterday was true. She would just have to gather her wits, which she didn't know where it had gone to, to remove any discomfort between her and Youko.

Maybe they just needed to get used to the idea.

"I really suck," she muttered, chuckling dryly. First, she pulled a stunt on Youko by taking her in this place without her knowledge instead of coming to her and talking to her like an adult that they were. Second, she evaded Youko's questions why she brought her here instead of telling her the truth that she wanted to clear up their relationship by being honest with herself and with Youko. Third, acting foolish last night by kissing Youko because she suddenly felt possessive of her. If she had just acted accordingly, then none of those things happened and maybe she wouldn't be feeling a bit uncomfortable now.

"What was done was done already."

In true Sei fashion, she grinned as she headed outside the cottage.

---o---

'What are you hesitating for, Youko? You've wanted this for years, and now that you have it, you are not acting on it?' Youko asked herself as she stared at her reflection on the mirror.

Yesterday night was like a dream. But why was it that she felt something was amiss? She had been happy, ecstatic even, when she found out that Sei loved her back. And when they held each other last night as they slept, it was bliss, and she kept on telling herself that it was real, that everything was real and not a dream, that she really was holding Sei and Sei holding her.

So what was missing?

For someone intelligent (she wasn't bragging), she couldn't figure out what it was.

"Think about it, Youko. What has been changed?"

Going over once again at the events that transpired yesterday (while blushing at the thought of Sei kissing her) and the weeks that had passed since the fateful graduation party at the Ogasawaras, and thinking about high school, Youko realized what was wrong. Sei hadn't been herself afterwards her admission. She was quite restrained after they arrived at the cottage. It seemed that the silence at the trip back threw them off.

Sure, Sei looked happy, but was subdued. She was expecting the playful Sei, considering what happened outside the club, but surprisingly, it didn't happen when they were back here. Of course Sei was painfully closer to her, both of them seemed to make a point of brushing against each other, and that was it. No silly remarks, no jokes, save a few when they were talking about their younger sisters at Lillian.

"Maybe I should put some effort on getting Sei to loosen up," Youko told herself as she headed outside the cottage where Sei was waiting for her. They were going out for breakfast.

Once outside the cottage, Youko gazed at the grass that was covered in soft snow. She was glad that yesterday was warmer because they were able to go out without really worrying about freezing to death. Although she wasn't objecting to the sight that greeted her just now. It reminded her of something.

Eyes widening a fraction in surprise when she remembered what it was, Youko turned to the tall woman before her.

"What?" Sei asked, seeing Youko gazing at her intently. "You had just realized today how gorgeous I look?"

Youko remained quiet as she gauged Sei's expression. Of course it had been a few days since the 'anniversary' of that fateful event in Sei's life. She had forgotten about it. But did Sei? It was just a day before her birthday. A day before her birthday when her first love left her. Was that the reason why Sei wasn't acting herself? But why did…

Sei shifted under Youko's scrutiny. It was making her uncomfortable, really uncomfortable. Quickly bending down, she grabbed a handful of snow and threw it at Youko's forehead.

Splat!

For a moment, Youko didn't move.

Sei grinned at her, like anyone caught red-handed in doing mischief. She watched as Youko took a deep breath, brushed the snow at her brow, and faster than she had ever seen Youko moved in her entire life, a snowball made its way to her face.

"You want to play rough, don't you?" Youko said smugly, trying to control herself from laughing. Sei's face covered in snow was really amusing.

Sei, being Sei, wouldn't just leave it at that. Before long, a snowball fight ensued, with two grown-ups giggling and laughing like kids. While Sei haphazardly threw at Youko, Youko was methodical, making sure that her snowballs hit their targets.

When Sei realized she couldn't win against Youko, she resorted to other tactics, tackling Youko to the snow-covered ground.

"You…cheater," Youko accused, heaving breath from the effort.

Sei grinned cheekily.

"You started it."

The dark-haired woman arched her now snow covered eyebrows.

"I only did it because you're being quiet," Sei reasoned.

"I see."

"Don't worry. I'm glad we did it. I had never seen you laugh so much like you did just moments ago, Youko," Sei said softly. She had always seen Youko acting mature, more than her age entailed even when they were younger. She had never seen her being easygoing. She had never seen her acting her age as a child, and the sight of Youko laughing and running and throwing snowballs at her truly warmed her heart.

Youko felt warm inside at those words. She would have said something, but Sei's snickering halted her.

"And I've never seen Youko look so unglamorous," Sei said as she look at Youko's face, changing from being serious to mischievous. Youko was currently sporting thick, white eyebrows, a red nose and cheeks, and black and white hair.

"And I've never seen you look so beautiful, Sei," Youko whispered, making the blonde on top of her blush and eyes going impossibly wide.

Holding with one hand the back of Sei's head, Youko gently pulled her, and touched her cold lips to her nose…and then to her cheeks…and then to her lips.

"Gaah! Cold!"

Sei's scream would have deafened Youko, but she didn't mind. Laughing, she watched Sei tried to reach underneath her clothes on her back where she had slipped some snow. Once done, and shivering with cold, Sei glared at her.

Youko would have ignored it had it not been for the strange gleam in Sei's eyes. Pinning her underneath, Sei brought her face closed to her and whispered heatedly, "You'll pay for that."

And then Sei's lips were on hers. Cold lips against cold lips melded each other, making it warm in the process. Suddenly, nothing else matters. Only the feel of each other. Whoever begged for an entrance and who accepted, it didn't matter as their tongue danced together, tasting each other, warming each other.

When the need for air became a matter of life and death, they broke the kiss, only to dive back hungrily.

They kissed softly…tenderly…passionately…hungrily, hands tight against each other, pulling each other against themselves.

After several minutes, they pulled to a stop. They had to. They were obviously outside, exposed to others who might come their way.

"I'll give you the tongue-clashing later," Youko said as she stood up.

Sei had the grace to blush at Youko's words, though her eyes sparkled in anticipation.

* * *

A/N: Those of you who had read _Little by Little_ surely have an idea how this story will end. After all, I made it clear that this story is _Little's_ side story and I'm just showing you how the two possibly ended the way they did at that story. Once you read those parts in _In A Rush_, then it means it's the end. For now, obviously, it isn't yet. I made the story longer coz probably I won't write anything about them anymore (or maybe write another short one, I don't know).

_---Arvendell---_

_15 September 2008_


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: This is just nonsense (for you anyway). Remember the tape that I mentioned I was transcribing last time? Well, yesterday my boss told me she was sorry because it was the wrong one! She said she could just imagine me having a difficult time doing it because the right tape was a monologue and not a round table discussion. I couldn't help but shook my head at that. Anyway, I learned new information from that wrong tape so it's alright.

Oh well, until she finds the correct tape, I can't concentrate editing a story because of waiting whether I have to write a paper on rainfall insurance or on watershed management or on importation. Geez! The wait is killing me that I don't feel like writing anything, except for my roommate's sake who kept on nagging me until I did her assignment on environmental laws. And then she told me a day after (with puppy-eyes) that she needed me to do her next position paper on water quality management in the country!

Haha I just want to rant ;)

For people like me who are working, good luck, good health and have fun working (I know I do even if it gives me headache most of the time :) For those who are still studying, study hard and enjoy life. For those who are doing something else, enjoy, too!

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Chapter 8

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The morning and afternoon had been spent with Sei and Youko teasing each other, or when no one was looking, stealing a kiss from the other. They would have preferred to stay at the cottage, but the need to buy presents for the New Year gathering at Sachiko's new house had to be done. Youko wouldn't have time to do it anymore except this day.

Surprisingly, Youko hadn't stopped Sei from being mischievous that she was, glad that she was now truly at ease. She just rolled her eyes as Sei gave flirty remarks to other good looking girls they encountered, and couldn't help but laugh when a guy did it to Sei. The look on Sei's face was priceless. She had sweet-talked the guy, and then told him to get lost.

However, Youko was torn from wanting to laugh, feel embarrassed, and elated, when the same thing happened to her. Sei glared at the guy as she grabbed her hand and pulled her away. And for the rest of the day, Sei didn't let go of her hand unless it was necessary, which she secretly enjoyed.

---o---

"I'm dying of hunger," Sei moaned as they made their way to the cottage.

Youko just shook her head. They would have arrived earlier had it not been for Sei wanting to go here and there, like it was her first time to be out shopping during the Christmas holidays. Though in a way, maybe it was, knowing how she hated Christmas season before. She just hoped that with the things that were going on between them, that hate would be forgotten soon.

"Unless our food had been delivered as you said, then you can have your fill soon," Youko said.

Earlier, Sei told Youko that she had arranged for a restaurant nearby to have their dinner delivered at the cottage. It would have been easier if they have dined before going back if only to avoid Sei's grumbling about hunger all the way here. However, Sei wanted dinner to be special and that was the end of discussion.

She wondered what it could be that the blonde had planned.

---o---

Youko stared at Sei for the nth time that night. Whatever the special dinner she was saying earlier, she couldn't really see it, much to her shame. They had a simple dinner, not even one that could be considered romantic. Although anything done with Sei was something that she would consider as romantic. However, Sei was grinning at her for the rest of their dinner, like she knew something that she didn't, and that was what making her all worked up.

A chuckle escaped Sei's lips as Youko gazed at her. She knew Youko had been puzzled about the fuss over the dinner, and had been trying to figure out what she was up to.

"Losing your touch, high and all-mighty Mizuno Youko?" Sei teased, which Youko answered with a frown but nonetheless kept her mouth shut.

"Isn't it romantic?" Sei continued, still chuckling.

"Spill it out, Sei, before I gut it out of you," Youko said, rolling her eyes.

"Youko being violent? Now that's something no one sees everyday," Sei said in mocked fear.

When Youko glared at her, Sei smiled in response.

"I'll tell you after desert," Sei said as she headed for the refrigerator. She came back with ice cream in hand and served Youko.

"I've been thinking, Youko, where do you think could we get an apartment that is bigger than yours near your school?" Sei asked as she savored the taste of the ice cream.

Youko nearly choked as soon as the words left Sei's lips. Did it mean that she and Sei would live together?

Not that she was against it.

"I want to look for an apartment as soon as we can."

"Sei…"

"Or for the time being, your apartment is just fine. Anyway, I need to finish college at Lillian first before I should move into yours. In that way, I could save some money first before being stripped with money seeing as you could eat like there's some kind of another one inside you, and you still had to focus in your studies long after I've graduated," Sei teased.

Youko ignored the teasing, knowing that she wasn't like that. She understood though, that it was Sei's way of saying that as soon as she graduated, they would live together, and Sei would work and provide for them despite her having support from her parents still.

"Or probably I had to get another part-time job just to be able to hire some maid to clean the mess that you would surely make at our apartment," Youko said with challenge in her voice, knowing how messy Sei's place could get as far as she could remember.

"Sure," Sei grinned, knowing that they had the topic of living together someday settled.

"By the way, you should wear this. I wouldn't want anyone trying to get you out while I'm at Lillian," Sei added nonchalantly as she grabbed Youko's left hand and slipped something at her ring finger.

Youko stared at her hand being held and then to the person holding her hand.

She stared for a few seconds…

A minute…

Two minutes…

Her hand started to tremble.

"What? Are you going to stare at me forever? I sure won't mind. Do you want me to pose or something?" Sei teased.

Youko tried to open her mouth, then closed it again, her mind blank, her wits scattered for the time being. She did it a couple of times while her gaze flicked from Sei's face to the glittering ring at her finger.

When finally Youko found the words to say, she did what she considered as the most embarrassing thing that happened in her life, and what Sei considered as the most amusing thing that she had ever seen – she burped.

Sei almost fell over at her seat as she burst out laughing just as heat covered Youko's face.

"Stop laughing or I'll have you thrown out of this place," Youko said in stern voice just as she recovered from embarrassment. She glared at Sei, before her eyes softened as she gazed at her ring finger.

"Ah, Youko, Youko…my life won't be boring as long as I'm with you," Sei said in between laughter as she wiped the tears that formed in her eyes.

"I had never imagined that something like that would happen when I give that ring to …"

Youko have had enough.

Sei's teasing was cut off when her lips were covered by Youko's.

The kiss was meant to punish, just as it meant as gratitude. It started as harsh and passionate, that soon turned gentle and passionate.

When Youko was about to pull away after what seemed like eternity, Sei grabbed her and once again touched her soft lips in equally soft lips. Soon, hands tangled both in blonde and black hair, caressing, playing, and tugging. And when they pulled away from the kiss, they were breathing hard, both with racing hearts, both with glazed eyes.

"Youko…"

"Sei…"

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A/N: It's time to end this story on the next chapter. Until then!

_---Arvendell---_

_22 September 2008_


	9. Chapter 9

A/N: I'm supposed to be busy, but since we have a university-wide celebration, people are busy on other things like practicing for the presentation tomorrow (they're still trying to force me to join the dance presentation but no way! I don't know how and I'm embarrassed!). Now after some food festival, I have a break before we start our symposium and so I decided to give you something to read ;)

Indecent fluff ;)

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Chapter 9

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When Youko woke up, the first thing she became aware of was the weight above her chest and in her legs.

The next thing she became aware of was the delicious warmth that emanated from the weight.

Cracking her sleepy eyes open, Youko inspected the weight above her, and was greeted by a sight that she had often dreamed of.

"Sei…" she whispered, not wanting to disturb the sleeping person with her.

Carefully, she tightened her arms around the blonde woman. She tensed when Sei moved, worried that she woke her up, but thankfully, Sei only snuggled closer to her. She relaxed, only to become rigid again. Both hers and Sei's movements had made her aware of one thing.

Both of them were bared.

She could feel it at the way skin touched with skin.

Now thoroughly awake, Youko raised her left hand to caress the blonde locks, a happy smile broke her face as the simple yet beautiful ring caught her eye. The ring was the only thing that she had on her body. Smiling fondly, her mind drifted back to what caused her and Sei to this state of undress.

_As soon as their names left in each other's lips, they both closed their eyes and moved their faces closed together. They shared a soft, gentle kiss. For a while, they contented themselves with exchanging gentle kisses. When they broke the kiss for the nth time to breath, they intently gazed at each other's eyes. A silent understanding passed over them. Holding each other's hand, they proceeded to the single room at the cottage, laughing as they supported each other due to their wobbly legs._

_As soon as Youko and Sei were sitting at the bed gazing at each other, Sei raised her hand and cupped Youko's left cheek. _

_Youko closed her eyes and turned her head to the hand holding her, pressing her cheek to the warm hand._

"_You're so beautiful, Youko…"_

_Youko opened her eyes and smiled, before she moved her face closer to Sei's. The touching of their lips once again had led to lips touching each other's faces in turn… soon each other's neck…and shoulder blades…just as trembling hands started to remove clothing._

_Youko had never felt so beautiful that night, so contented. And Sei never felt as loved and as happy as she had been that night. They made passionate, sweet and slow love._

"Hmm…Youko…morning…" Sei murmured as she nuzzled Youko's chest, cutting the latter's musings.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," Youko said fondly, bending down to give the blonde locks a gentle kiss, but instead, her lips landed on lips as Sei raised her head to look at her.

"Yummy," Sei said, grinning, her eyes still closed. "I want more," she said, lips puckered.

Giggling, Youko kissed her again, meaning to only give Sei a chaste kiss but the latter opened her lips and deepened the kiss.

"What a nice way to wake up," Sei said once they stopped, her eyes twinkling.

"I want it everyday, every morning."

"That would be a problem."

"Why? I'm sure you love it, too," Sei said as she kissed Youko once again.

"I would love to, but we can't. You're at Lillian, while the law school is miles away."

"I'll change school."

"Sei!"

Sei rolled her eyes.

"Fine, I won't. As if I haven't been prepared to do that," she muttered the last sentence, though still loud enough for Youko to hear.

Youko's heart swelled with warmth. Hearing Sei saying that she was prepared to leave Lillian just to be with her made her happy, knowing how important she was to Sei now. But she wouldn't want Sei to make that kind of sacrifice just for her.

"We'll do as what we had discussed last night. You'll move with me once you graduated from Lillian. There's no need to rush in."

"We've been moving slow since then so being in a rush is just fine…though you're right, we'll just have to wait some more," Sei said when Youko sighed.

"But I'm sure, you won't have any problem being in a rush with this," Sei added before giving Youko a passionate kiss just as her hand traveled her soft, smooth body. She chuckled when Youko arched her back as her wandering fingers caressed her sensitive body.

"You like this, don't you?" Sei breathed, shivering when Youko moaned her name in response. Electricity traveling her body, she slid downwards of her lover's soft, sweaty body, her lips making a pathway, kissing, nipping and biting.

"Sei…oh my…" Youko moaned as Sei kissed her, caressed her, teased her. "Please…oh please…Sei…"

However, Sei had other plans. Instead of giving what Youko wanted, she slowed down, keeping Youko near the edge but not crossing over.

Youko shivered and moaned both with frustration and pleasure, trying to reach something but unable to do so. It was driving her insane. When she moved her hips to reach out, Sei held her in place, stopping her movements.

"You…tease…" Youko panted, holding Sei's head hard, pushing her towards her. When she thought she couldn't take it anymore, Sei finally gave her what she needed, what she wanted. Sei muffled her scream with her lips, kissing her hard.

"You're amazing…" Sei panted, her face buried in Youko's shoulder.

Later on, a game of tag ensued as Sei tried to escape Youko's revenge. The chase ended in the bathroom with Sei moaning Youko's name with passion.

"I'm tired," Sei said, flopping on the bed as she dried her hair.

"You can rest later," Youko said as she put on her underwear, glaring at Sei when she caught her grinning naughtily. "Don't even think about it," she warned.

"What? I'm not thinking anything," Sei denied, though Youko wouldn't be fooled.

"We have to get going. Sachiko and the others would wait."

Sei pouted and sulked in response that had Youko rolling her eyes.

"Come on, big baby, get going."

---o---

A grumpy-looking Sachiko greeted Youko and Sei.

"Did we disturb your sleep?" Youko asked in amused tone.

"Good morning to you, too. Please come in. Please make yourself comfortable," Sachiko said, leading them inside then left them to go upstairs.

"I'm hungry," Sei said, raiding Sachiko's refrigerator while Youko settled for a tea.

"You're always hungry, Sei."

Sei just grinned in response, attacking a cake.

"Sachiko, this is delicious," Sei said when Sachiko came back, fresh from the shower.

Sachiko nodded in response, then started to prepare food for lunch.

"You don't seem happy to see us. If you don't want us here, then you shouldn't have invited us," Youko said in a serious tone, though both Sei and Sachiko knew that she was just teasing.

"That's not what I meant. I just didn't get enough sleep, that's all," Sachiko answered.

"Hmm, I wonder…is Yumi-chan here?"

Sachiko's blush was the only answer Youko needed. She raised her eyebrows just as Sei started to laugh.

"I see. I assume she's still asleep."

It was the start of non-stop teasing. The entire time that lunch was being prepared, both Sei and Youko entertained themselves by teasing the irate Sachiko. And just when the food was ready, Yumi appeared at the kitchen door.

"Oi, right on time, Yumi-chan," Sei said, hugging Yumi from behind.

"Sei-sama! What are you…Youko-sama?"

"Good morning, Yumi-chan. Or should I say good afternoon?" Youko greeted pleasantly.

Yumi looked at Sachiko who was busy setting the table, then back to Youko and said, "Good afternoon, Youko-sama, and to you too, Sei-sama. Please let me go now."

"Hmm…Yumi-chan, what happened to your neck?" Sei asked, looking at the now exposed Yumi's neck, showing red marks when she pulled the neckline of the latter's sweatshirt down.

"My neck?" Yumi asked in confusion, before blushing furiously.

Sei laughed and Youko giggled while Sachiko frowned.

"Wow! Sachiko is pretty scary, huh. What is she like in bed, Yumi-chan?" Sei teased as she let Yumi go.

"S-sei-sama!"

"Come on, Yumi-chan. Tell us. If you don't, I'll tell the others that you slept with Sachiko," Sei pressed on and on, ignoring Sachiko's glares.

"Wild…" Yumi murmured absentmindedly.

Sei laughed hysterically and Youko giggled while Sachiko blushed furiously and glared at Yumi who turned even redder. And then Yumi couldn't help herself and joined Sei and Youko's laughter. Soon, even Sachiko was caught up and joined the laughter while protesting that she wasn't wild.

Youko smiled when Yumi went to Sachiko and hugged her gently and whispered, 'I love you.' Her smile grew wider when Sachiko smiled at Yumi, whispering 'I love you, too' before they shared a short, tender kiss. She was happy for them.

"You can say that to yourself, Sei-sama. What are those marks doing in your neck and in Youko-sama's?"

Both Youko and Sei jolted in surprise just as Sachiko and Yumi shared a hearty laughter. Staring at each other, heat crept at Youko's and Sei's face when they realized that Yumi was right.

"That's because Youko is wilder than Sachiko, Yumi-chan," Sei answered, laughing when Youko glared at her.

"And you're wilder than Youko-sama," Yumi answered with a smile.

"And Youko loves me for it," Sei added.

If looks could kill, Sei would have dropped dead right there and then. But knowing Sei, it didn't affect her one bit as she started telling Youko's two younger sisters about them. And so instead, Youko stood up, walked over Sei, covered Sei's lips with one hand, then whispered, "You'll be dead tonight."

Sei shivered at the heated promise.

"I can hardly wait."

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---Wakas---

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A/N: It's all done, thank goodness!

_---Arvendell—_

_09 October 2008_

_12:54 PM_


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